Apevia X-QBOII Black Case Review

Introduction:

I consider computer cases the most important part in a build; yes, even more than the core components. Literally dozens of factors all come together when choosing a chassis: overall size, hard drive capacity, motherboard size, optical drive capacity, cooling capability, working room, and dozens of other characteristics. And most important of all, at least to me, are looks. All these factors unite to plague computer enthusiasts; cases are arguably the most difficult component to shop for.

With all this in mind, I can focus my attention on the Apevia Black X-QBOII, with window. The X-QBOII targets enthusiasts who do not want a large, bulky mid-tower, without being too small as to make a computer totally useless. It takes micro-ATX motherboards and is capable of holding two optical drives, two hard drives, and a large graphics card, like an 8800GTX. This particular X-QBOII is windowed, so you can show off the innards of the unit, but it also comes in a non-windowed version. It appears to be quite the balance between size and power, doesn't it? I'm usually not excited about small cases—they're usually too small to have any fun with—but this one looks pretty intriguing. Let's have a look.

Closer Look:

Here's what I found when I opened up my door (the box is definitely smaller than what I'm used to seeing in terms of cases):

I grabbed it and proceeded to open the package, finding the X-QBOII wedged in between two pieces of foam. Wrestling it out, I see that the front is covered with light, plastic, static wrap. As usual, the screws, cables, and manual are inside a box within the case.

I pulled out the accessories box and found a manual, power cable, screws, a single zip-tie, a sticky cable router, a couple pairs of HDD rails, and some non-essential gizmos. The package seems a little sparse in terms of screws, even for a case this size.